Industry

Force-feedback is used for simulating the operation necessary to manufacture the vehicles, long before the first prototypes are built. Car companies can reduce the technical risks, improve the assembly processes, and in the end save time and money.

In the nuclear industry, force-feedback is used to control robots remotely, so that operators are not exposed to radiations. AREVA uses robotic technologies in the nuclear fuel management plants. They chose Virtuose 6D TAO for operations like in-service maintenance, clean-up and dismantling of facilities, used in their daily operations.

Aerospace

The aircraft industry also uses force-feedback for validating maintenance operations on future planes, in order to validate and optimize them. Because maintenance is a major factor of the operating costs of commercial planes, force-feedback contributes to the companies competitiveness.

François Guillaume, AR/VR project manager at Airbus Group Innovations, said: “The Scale1 helps us to perform new operations in virtual reality. Totally integrated our platforms SAMIRA and RHEA, we can simulate complex assembly operations with a really large workspace. While the team observes from a 3D stereoscopic screen, the user wears an HMD and the haptic system is totally transparent for him. He feels the collision in his hand, when the object touches or rubs against surrounding structures.”

Research

Force-feedback is also an essential tool for scientific research. Research areas such as psychophysics, sports and health, ergonomics, human-machine interaction, virtual reality, micro and nanotechnologies, need ways to transfer forces and movements between humans and machines.